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Elizabeth Hurley

 
Who2 Biography: Elizabeth Hurley, Actor
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Elizabeth Hurley
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  • Born: 10 June 1965
  • Birthplace: Hampshire, England
  • Best Known As: Vanessa Kensington in Austin Powers

Elizabeth Hurley was a hit as the sexy spy Vanessa Kensington in the 1997 Mike Myers spoof Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery. (Hurley played the daughter of the original Mrs. Kensington, Mimi Rogers.) Prior to that film, Hurley was best known for her 13-year relationship with actor Hugh Grant; the two split up in May 2000. Hurley's most famous public appearance may have been at the 1994 premiere of Grant's film Four Weddings and a Funeral, where she wore a Versace dress held together by safety pins. She served as the spokesmodel for Estée Lauder cosmetics for many years; in 2001 she was replaced by model Carolyn Murphy. Her other films include Passenger 57 (1992, with Wesley Snipes), Bedazzled (2000, with Hurley starring as the Devil ), and Method (2004).

Hurley and Grant co-founded the production company Simian Films in 1994... She gave birth to a baby boy, Damien Charles Hurley, on 4 April 2002. Hurley named film producer Stephen Bing as the father; Bing at first disputed the claim, but later admitted paternity... Hurley married Indian businessman Arun Nayar on 3 March 2007.

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Actor: Elizabeth Hurley
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Home > Library > Entertainment & Arts > Actors
  • Born: Jun 10, 1965 in Basingstoke, England
  • Occupation: Actor
  • Active: '90s-2000s
  • Major Genres: Comedy, Drama
  • Career Highlights: Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, Permanent Midnight, Bedazzled
  • First Major Screen Credit: Rowing with the Wind (1987)

Biography

Considered to be one of the world's most famous arm ornaments, model, and sometimes-actress, Elizabeth Hurley first became the topic of gossip sheets when she appeared on the arm of boyfriend Hugh Grant at the premiere for his Four Weddings and a Funeral in 1994. Scantily clad in a Versace gown held up by safety pins, audacity, and little else, Hurley was soon attracting as much press coverage as Grant, and a career as one of the most photographed women of the 1990s was born.

Hurley, who was born in Basingstoke, England, on June 10, 1965, originally wanted to be a dancer. Her interest in dancing soon gave way to acting pursuits, and following studies in dance and theater at the London Studio Centre, she began going on casting calls. The aspiring actress found work in a number of forgettable films and TV miniseries, and it was while working on a film set that she met fellow actor Hugh Grant. Although she first became recognizable due to activities associated with Grant's onscreen work, it was her boyfriend's dubious offscreen exploits that really put Hurley in the spotlight. Thanks to Grant's notorious dalliance with a prostitute by the name of Divine Brown, Hurley was thrust into the public eye with little room to hide. Further complicating the situation was her work as the spokesmodel for Estee Lauder at the time, a position that both heightened her fame and compounded the problems associated with Grant's infamous behavior.

After the ruckus surrounding the Brown scandal died down, Hurley began earning more recognition for her work in Hollywood, both as a producer (she and Grant founded the production company Simian Films in 1994) and an actress. Perhaps her most famous role to date has been as Vanessa Kensington, sidekick and eventual paramour of Mike Myers in Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997). She reprised the role for the film's 1999 sequel, although her character was killed off only minutes into the movie. Hurley has also appeared in such films as Permanent Midnight (1998), in which she played the wife of a heroin addict; and EdTV (1999), which featured her as a model who provides heady temptation for the film's titular protagonist (Matthew McConaughey). Hurley would play a temptress of a different sort -- a busty, female version of Satan -- in 2000's Bedazzled with Brendan Fraser. In 2001, Hurley took part in the four part documentary The Human Face, which was narrated by fellow Briton John Cleese, and later starred as a beautiful doctor in Double Whammy with Steve Buscemi and Dennis Leary. Hurley met up with Leary once again for Dawg, the follow-up to Double Whammy (2002). Unfortunately for Hurley, most of the notoriety the young actress gained during 2002 was, once again, of the tabloid variety -- a heated paternity battle with former boyfriend Steve Bing made more headlines than Dawg or Serving Sara. In 2004, Hurley will star alongside Jermey Sisto in Duncan Roy's 2000 thriller Method. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
Wikipedia: Elizabeth Hurley
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Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
Elizabeth Hurley

Hurley at the launch of Estee Lauder's new fragrance, Sensuous, in July 2008
Born Elizabeth Jane Hurley
10 June 1965 (1965-06-10) (age 44)
Basingstoke, Hampshire, England
Occupation Actress/Model
Years active 1987–present (Actress)
Spouse(s) Arun Nayar (2007-present)
Official website

Elizabeth Jane Hurley (born 10 June 1965) is an English model and actress who became known as a girlfriend of Hugh Grant in the 1990s.[1] Born in Basingstoke, Hurley was a struggling actress in 1987, when she met Grant while working on a Spanish production called Remando Al Viento. In 1994, Grant became the focus of worldwide media attention due to the global box office success of his film Four Weddings and a Funeral.[2] Hurley accompanied him to the film's London premiere and was noted for wearing a plunging black Versace dress held together with gold safety pins.[3] According to The Guardian,[1] Hurley was "then known as 'Hugh Grant's girlfriend,' now known as 'Hugh Grant's former girlfriend,'" due to their high-profile romantic relationship that ended in 2000.[4]

The highlight of Hurley's professional life has been her association with the cosmetics company Estée Lauder. The company gave Hurley her first modeling job at the age of 29[5] and has used her as a model for its products, especially perfumes such as Sensuous, Intuition, and Pleasures, since 1995.[6] Her best known cinematic work was as Vanessa Kensington in Mike Myers' hit spy comedies, Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997) and Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999).[7] Hurley currently models and designs an eponymous beachwear line. In 2002, Hurley had a son.

Contents

Early life

Hurley was born as a middle child in Basingstoke, Hampshire, England, the daughter of Angela and Roy Hurley.[8] Her Irish father was a major in the British Army, while her Anglican mother was a teacher at Kempshott Infant School.[8] She has an older sister Katie and a younger brother Michael. Hurley was educated at local schools including Kempshott Infant School, Kempshott Junior School, and the Harriet Costello School. Aspiring to be a dancer as a young girl, she took ballet classes and later briefly studied dance and theatre at the London Studio Centre.[9] While in her teens, she became involved with punk fashion, dying her hair pink and piercing her nose.[7] "When I was 16 - this was about 1981, 1982 - the thing to be in Basingstoke, the suburb I grew up in, was punk," she explained.[10] She also reportedly associated with the New Age Travellers in her youth.[11]

Career

Hurley started working as an actress in the late 1980s and became a model in 1995. During the 2000s, she worked unsuccessfully as a reality television presenter in Britain. Allmovie described her as "one of the world's most famous arm ornaments, model, and sometimes-actress," with the first being a reference to her red-carpet appearances accompanying Hugh Grant to his film premieres and other social functions while they were a couple until 2000.[9] She has appeared three times on the cover of British Vogue.[12]

Fashion

In 1995, with no prior modeling experience, Hurley was introduced as an Estée Lauder spokesmodel.[7][5] She later recounted, "I was far from an ingénue, having had my first modeling job at 29."[5] Hurley has since featured in ads for Lauder's 'Pleasures', 'Beautiful', 'Dazzling', 'Tuscany per Donna', and 'Sensuous' fragrances as well as participated in campaigns for the company's other cosmetics.[13] She was replaced as the face of Estée Lauder by Carolyn Murphy in 2001. However, she continues to work with the company non-exclusively, signing a contract for the 14th year with Lauder in 2008.[6] In 2005, she modeled for Saloni, Liverpool Department Stores of Mexico, and Lancel. She was part of the seasonal advertising campaigns for Jordache, Got Milk?, Patrick Cox, MQ Clothiers of Sweden, and Lancel in 2006 and Monsoon in 2007. In 2008, Hurley was unveiled as the seasonal campaign face for Blackglama mink.[13]

In April 2005, Elizabeth Hurley Beach, her beachwear line that she also models every summer, was launched at Harrods in the UK. It debuted later that year in select Saks Fifth Avenue stores in the United States and other European countries.[14] She told Tatler magazine, "I was on Necker Island for a fashion shoot and even as [Richard Branson] was lying back in a hammock, he was on the phone, doing deals, managing his empire. But then I thought I am never going to have even a holiday home, let alone an island, unless I start a business that I can do without disrupting Damian's school days."[15] In May 2008, Hurley designed and modeled a capsule collection of 12 swimsuits for the Spanish clothes brand MANGO.[16]

Hurley is signed to the Independent Modeling Agency in London.

Movies

Hurley made her first film appearance in Aria (1987).[8] She has since appeared in movies such as Passenger 57, EDtv, Bedazzled, and Serving Sara. In 1997, she received her first and only acting award, the ShoWest Supporting Actress of the Year, for her performance in the spy spoof Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery.[7] When Hugh Grant founded and became the director of Simian Films in 1994, Hurley was credited as one of the producers for the company's two Grant vehicles, Extreme Measures (1996) and Mickey Blue Eyes (1999).[17] Critics such as Julie Burchill, who has called Hurley's acting "a notch above pornography," have dismissed her performances.[4] In 2000, she was publicly criticised for breaking a five-month acting strike to film an Estée Lauder advertisement, for which she was fined $100,000 (£70,000 in 2000) by the Screen Actors Guild and labeled "Elizabeth Scably" by protesters.[18][19]

Television

In the late 1980s, Hurley portrayed the title character in a four-part television drama, Christabel. After appearing in John Cleese's The Human Face (2001), she hosted the inaugural season of the British reality series Project Catwalk on Sky1 in 2006. The show drew tepid ratings with only 1% of its target audience tuning into the first few episodes.[20] Hurley was almost universally criticised as a presenter. Marcelle D'Argy Smith, a former editor of Cosmopolitan magazine, called her "witheringly boring" and added: "Liz Hurley has no fashion experience whatsoever. She wore a dress and has appeared at premieres."[20] GQ 's Dylan Jones defended her as someone "immersed in the fashion world as a celebrity."[20] Hurley was ridiculed by critics for her "aspirational Basingstoke-gone-jetset accent and dead fish stare,"[20] while also being described as "the not-nice-but-dim host."[20] She was dropped after one season because her bosses reportedly believed she was too wooden.[21] It was also later revealed that Hurley had asked contestants to send her free clothes off the record.[22]

Charity

Hurley has been active in Estée Lauder's Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign, as part of which the company created an "Elizabeth Pink" lipstick whose sales benefit The Breast Cancer Research Foundation.[23] Hurley, whose grandmother died of breast cancer,[24] was the mistress of ceremonies at "The Hot Pink Party" that marked the tenth anniversary of The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. She supported The Prince's Trust by co-presenting the 2003 Fashion Rocks event in its aid[25] and helping launch the Get Into Cooking youth initiative in 2004.[26] She has also helped raise funds for End Hunger Network,[27] ARK children's charity,[28] and the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital & Research Centre.[29]

Personal life

Hurley with her husband at the Ampney Crucis Village Fete in 2008

While Hurley was Hugh Grant's girlfriend,[7] he was embroiled in an international scandal for soliciting the services of a female prostitute in 1995. Hurley stood by him and accompanied Grant to the premiere of his movie Nine Months.[7] After 13 years together, Grant announced an "amicable" split from Hurley in May 2000.[30] Hurley lived in a London home owned by Grant after the break-up.[31] She invited Grant to her wedding in 2007, but he chose not to attend.[32] On 4 April 2002, Hurley gave birth to a son, Damian Charles Hurley.[33] The baby's father, Steve Bing, denied paternity by alleging that he and Hurley had a brief, non-exclusive relationship in 2001.[34] A DNA test, however, established Bing as the child's father.[35] Hurley is godmother to Patsy Kensit's son Lennon, and two of David Beckham and Victoria Beckham's sons (Brooklyn and Romeo).[36]

In late 2002, Hurley started dating Indian textile heir Arun Nayar, who has run a small software company since 1998.[37] On 2 March 2007, Hurley and Nayar married at Sudeley Castle and then had a second wedding at Umaid Bhawan Palace in Jodhpur, India.[32] The Indian celebrations included a sangeet at Nagaur Fort[38][39] and a reception at Mehrangarh Fort.[40] The wedding ceremonies, photos of which were sold to Hello! magazine for a reported £2 million,[41] were attended by Elton John (who gave Hurley away),[42] Tracey Emin, Tom Ford, Elle Macpherson, Donatella Versace, Trinny Woodall, Tamara Mellon, Valentino, Janet Street-Porter, Patsy Kensit, and Leonard and Evelyn Lauder, among other celebrities.[32][43] Hurley, who has an estimated net worth of £13 million according to the Daily Mail,[44] resides on a 400-acre (1.6 km2) organic farm in Barnsley, Gloucestershire, with her son and husband.[45][46]

Filmography

Film

Television

  • Christabel (1988) ... Christabel Bielenberg
  • Act of Will (1989) ... Christina
  • Death Has a Bad Reputation (1990) ... Julia Latham
  • The Orchid House (1991) ... Natalie
  • Sharpe's Enemy (1994) ... Lady Isabella Farthingdale
  • Shamrock Conspiracy (1995) ... Cecilia Harrison
  • Harrison: Cry of the City (1996) ... Cecilia Harrison
  • Samson and Delilah (1996) ... Delilah
  • The Human Face (2001) ... Various roles
  • Project Catwalk (2006) ... Presenter

     Single episode appearances:

Theatre

  • The Cherry Orchard - A Jubilee (Russian & Soviet Arts Festival)
  • The Man Most Likely To (Middle East tour)

References

  1. ^ a b People — guardian.co.uk. Retrieved 21 November 2007.
  2. ^ Farndale, Nigel. Movie Connections: Four Weddings and a Funeral. The Sunday Telegraph, page 39. 16 September 2007. Retrieved 11 September 2007.
  3. ^ Liz Hurley expecting baby — bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 31 March 2007.
  4. ^ a b Ferla, Ruth. Elizabeth Hurley: The Swimsuit Issue — nytimes.com. 4 October 2005. Retrieved 9 November 2007.
  5. ^ a b c Estée Lauder Lauds Elizabeth Hurley — Fashion Week Daily. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
  6. ^ a b Murphy sidelines Hurley at Lauder — CNN. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
  7. ^ a b c d e f Liz Hurley: Life in the spotlight — bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 31 March 2007.
  8. ^ a b c Elizabeth Hurley — thebiographychannel.co.uk. Retrieved 31 March 2007.
  9. ^ a b Allmovie: Elizabeth Hurley — Allmovie. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
  10. ^ When Sell-outs reach their sell-by date — herald.ie. Retrieved 4 August 2008.
  11. ^ [1]
  12. ^ Vogue Covers — vogue.co.uk. Retrieved 17 June 2007.
  13. ^ a b Elizabeth Hurley — Fashion model directory. Retrieved 28 July 2008.
  14. ^ Elizabeth Hurley — hellomagazine.com. Retrieved 31 March 2007.
  15. ^ 'Hugh and I speak every single day' — The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
  16. ^ Elizabeth Hurley for Mango — ItalianWorldFashion.com. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
  17. ^ Marx, Andy. Grant inks two-year deal at Castle Rock. Variety. 8 July 1994. Retrieved 10 September 2007.
  18. ^ Emily Farache (2000-12-18). "SAG Hurls $100G Fine at Hurley". E! Online. E! Entertainment Television, Inc.. http://www.eonline.com/news/article/index.jsp?uuid=dc9f1d6a-ebf5-4981-98de-878babdd3003. Retrieved 2008-08-24. "The model-actress has had to cough up a $100,000 fine for doing scab work during the recent actors strike." 
  19. ^ "Hurley fined for strike-breaking ad". BBC News Online. BBC. 2000-12-18. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/1075657.stm. Retrieved 2008-08-24. "Actress Liz Hurley has been ordered to pay a £70,000 fine by a US acting union for filming an advert during a strike." 
  20. ^ a b c d e The Frocky Horror show — The Independent. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
  21. ^ Kelly Gets Fashion Nod — Sky News. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
  22. ^ She's a Class Apart — Daily Record. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
  23. ^ Elizabeth Hurley — womencelebs.com. Retrieved 31 March 2007.
  24. ^ Famous Faces Speak Out — lifetimetv.com. Retrieved 31 March 2007.
  25. ^ Fashion Rocks — princeofwales.gov.uk. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
  26. ^ HRH launches the Get into Cooking initiative from The Prince's Trust — princeofwales.gov.uk. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
  27. ^ Celebrities who care — endhunger.com. Retrieved 4 August 2008.
  28. ^ Stars come out for Ark charity event — The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 4 August 2008.
  29. ^ "Elizabeth Hurley visits SKMCH&RC". shaukatkhanum.org.pk. http://www.shaukatkhanum.org.pk/Liz_hurely.htm. Retrieved 2007-11-05. 
  30. ^ Hugh Grant and Elizabeth Hurley announce split — The Associated Press. 23 May 2000. Retrieved 17 February 2007.
  31. ^ Kamp, David. Runaway bachelor. Vanity Fair, page 170. ISSN 07338899. 1 May 2003. Retrieved 11 September 2007.
  32. ^ a b c Liz's wedding gift to guests - a Bollywood movie starring herself — dailymail.co.uk. Retrieved 12 March 2007.
  33. ^ Timeline: The Bing and Hurley affair — bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 31 March 2007.
  34. ^ Liz To Reveal All In Court — wenn.com 31 December 2001. Retrieved 6 August 2008.
  35. ^ Bing is Hurley baby's father — BBC news 19 June 2002. Retrieved 16 June 2008.
  36. ^ Elizabeth Hurley — thebiographychannel.co.uk. Retrieved 18 June 2007.
  37. ^ "Arun Nayar: Mr Liz Hurley". http://news.independent.co.uk/people/profiles/article2323445.ece. Retrieved 2007-07-29. 
  38. ^ Elizabeth marries Arun for the second time in Indian ceremony — hellomagazine.com. Retrieved 13 March 2007.
  39. ^ Inside Liz Hurley's Indian wedding palace — telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 12 March 2007.
  40. ^ Fight mars Hurley's India wedding — bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 12 March 2007.
  41. ^ Enter Team Hurley - including four make-up artists — dailymail.co.uk. Retrieved 5 March 2007.
  42. ^ Choker for Liz on wedding day — thesun.co.uk. Retrieved 29 May 2007.
  43. ^ Elizabeth and Arun share their beautiful wedding with Hello! — hellomagazine.co.uk. Retrieved 13 March 2007.
  44. ^ Richest women in showbiz — dailymail.co.uk. Retrieved 31 March 2007.
  45. ^ Elizabeth Hurley, Arun Nayar to Wed in March — People. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
  46. ^ Elizabeth Hurley cooking up new recipes — The Daily Telegraph

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